KATHMANDU: In an attempt to listen to the grievances of the private sector, Minister for Industry, Commerce and Supplies Lekh Raj Bhatta has asked the industrialists and entrepreneurs to come up with a more concrete five-year plan for industrial development.
Speaking at a program organized by the Ministry at Pavilion Hall, Durbarmarg, Kathmandu, Minister Bhatta asked the representatives of various organizations working in industrial sector to come with broad detailed five-year plans so that the collaboration can be made more fruitful in the days to come.
“Unless the entrepreneurs/industrialists and the government know each other and collaborate and cooperate together we can’t progress.” Minister Bhatta said speaking about the significance of such programs entailing the representatives from the industrial sector and the line ministry.
He shed light on the importance of interconnected approach between the small, medium and large scale industries where the first two become the provider of the resources required for the last one.
Moti Lal Dugad, the State Minister at the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies opined that such joint sharing of the industrialists and the line ministry bolsters the relationship between the entrepreneurs and their regulating and supporting ministry.
“We have resources required for industrialization,” the State Minister said, “what we lack are the willpower, confidence and commitment to bring out the potentials in abundance.”
He hoped that the program would be fruitful in narrowing down the differences and help both parties to work together to materialize the campaign ‘Happy Nepali, Prosperous Nepal.’
The participants of the program expressed openly their concern ranging from the hazards they were facing in re-registration of the industries, registrations, VAT, multiple taxes levied on the industrialist, to the gaps underlying between the words and deeds of the government.
“Most of the industrialists are in the status of ‘Wait and See’ due to some confusions underlying in the words and deeds of the government,” Bhawani Rana, the Chairperson of FNCCI said in the program.
She hoped that the initiations like calling the entrepreneurs and listening to them will minimize the gap in the future.
Industraliatists Chandra Prasad Dhakal, Chandi Raj Dhakal, Shekhar Golchha, Rajendra Malla, Umesh Prasad Singh, Satish Kumar Mahar, Deepak Shrestha among many others shared the problems paralyzing the industrial sector and requested the government to make conducive environment to help it overcome the crisis.
The program was facilitated by Baikuntha Aryal, the Secretary at the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies, Yam Kumari Khatiwoda, another secretary at the Ministry had addressed the concerns expressed by the participants.
Dinesh Bhattarai, the Joint Secretary at the Ministry had offered the presentation shedding light on the government efforts to strengthen the industrial sector.
All participants thanked the Ministry for the initiation of the interactions with the stakeholders and expected the continuity of such programs in the days to come.
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